1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to a knee support device for providing focused and conformable pressure to reduce knee pain.
2. Background of the Invention
The industry of pain relief has become a multi-million dollar industry. Medicines and devices of all kinds are produced and marketed to relieve pain and to prevent further injury. As individual's get older, their bodies begin to break down and certain parts of their bodies tend to become prone to pain. Additionally, those individuals that are active may have injuries from over strenuous use of their bodies.
In particular, individuals such as runners, jumpers and other athletes such as skiers, cyclists and soccer players put heavy stress on their knees. The muscles that surround the knee provide mobility and strength to the legs. When athletes run or jump, the kneecap alone often endures forces of 1000 to 1500 pounds. The entire knee joint is under massive stress with these kinds of activities, especially when there are imbalances in muscle strength or flexibility. In time, overuse injuries, such as tendonitis, chondromalacia, runner's and jumper's knee, illiotibial band syndrome and Osgood Schlatter's disease, may develop.
The knee joint includes the patella or kneecap which is a thick, triangular bone which articulates with the femur and covers and protects the front of the knee joint. It is attached to the tendon of the quadriceps femoris muscle, which contracts to straighten the leg. The primary functional role of the patella is knee extension. The patella increases the leverage that the tendon can exert on the femur by increasing the angle at which it acts. Injuries to the patella can be very painful.
To alleviate some of the pain, knee braces are worn on the affected leg. Conventional knee braces are generally made of a sleeve of soft material, such as Neoprene, and have a cutout for the patella. Most include some kind of buttress, usually on the lateral side, or a raised ring (‘do-nut’) protecting the whole patella. Furthermore, most conventional braces are ‘static’ where there is no actual force applied to the patella, although some conventional braces are ‘dynamic’ and have elasticized straps for creating dynamic, medially displacing force to the patella.
None of the conventional braces, however, include a support or pad that is placed directly under the patella that is easily conformable and moldable to the size of the user's patella to provide focused pressure to reduce knee pain.